TO:Andrew P. Powers, City Manager
FROM:Kelvin Parker, Community Development Director
DATE:April 8, 2025
SUBJECT: Conejo Summit Project Environmental Consulting Professional Services Agreement Amendment
RECOMMENDATION:
1. Approve a Second Amendment to Professional Services Agreement (Contract No. 13110-2022) with Environmental Science Associates, Inc., (ESA) of Camarillo, CA, for the preparation of environmental documents for the Conejo Summit Project generally located at 1691, 1711, 1721, and 2000 Rancho Conejo Boulevard and 2751 Conejo Center Drive in the amount of $23,400, and additional services of $11,600, increasing the total not-to-exceed amount to $175,000, and extend the date of the contract to June 30, 2026.
2. Find that the approval of a professional services agreement is not a project under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
LEVINE ACT ITEM: Yes
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
No Additional Funding Requested. The $35,000 increase to the ESA Professional Services Agreement is included in the Adopted FY 2024-25 General Fund Budget. The amendment is required to complete the preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and will be reimbursed by the applicant at the completion of the project. Other costs are limited to staff time to prepare this report, assist in the preparation of the EIR, and are offset by application fees paid by the applicant.
BACKGROUND:
On September 13, 2022, City Council approved Contract No. 13110-2022 with ESA for a base cost of $117,950 and additional services of $22,050 for a total not- to-exceed amount of $140,000 to provide professional services in connection with the preparation of an EIR for the Conejo Summit Project.
Conejo Summit Project Environmental Impact Report Consultant April 8, 2025
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On June 28, 2024, the Community Development Director and City Manager approved the First Amendment to Contract No. 13110-2022 with ESA to extend the term for a period of 12 months from June 30, 2024, to June 30, 2025.
Between November 26, 2024, and January 10, 2025, the City circulated the Draft EIR for a 45-day public review period and received 130 total comments, a substantial number of comments.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
Contract No. 13110-2022 was approved for a total not-to-exceed amount of $140,000 based on an estimate to complete an EIR for environmental clearance.
During the preparation of the Draft EIR, $20,000 of the $22,050 allocated for additional services was used to prepare: 1) a quantitative construction/operational health risk assessment; 2) updated modeling (air quality, energy, greenhouse gas, and noise) and health risk assessment associated with updated grading assumptions; and 3) additional noise modeling.
However, the Draft EIR received more public comments than budgeted in the contract. In addition, organizing the letters and providing in-depth responses to comments required significantly more time and involved a greater number of technical experts than originally planned.
ESA has prepared a revised Scope of Work which has been reviewed and accepted by both the City and the applicant team. Specifically, Task 4 “Prepare and Distribute Final EIR” of the Second Amendment Scope of Work (Attachment #1) is requested to be increased by $18,120 from $18,220 to $36,340, to address the unanticipated number of technical comments. A total of eight comment letters were received, including four from attorneys, with each letter containing one to 61 individual comments for a total of 130 comments. This volume significantly exceeded the previous scope of work, which had anticipated roughly 40 percent of the actual number of individual comments received.
Additionally, to ensure readiness, if substantial information is presented shortly before the project’s public hearings, the consultant team will be available to assist with addressing inquiries and responding to comments both in the lead-up to and during the public hearing.
The total amount allocated to Task 5 “Management, Meetings/Teleconferences & Coordination” is requested to increase by $5,280 from $12,780 to $18,060 as the previous scope of work assumed a nine-month timetable, which was extended to 12-plus months with additional involvement of extraneous staff at internal and public meetings. As such, the current task order amount does not cover the total cost based on the need for additional services. Therefore, staff is requesting a Conejo Summit Project Environmental Impact Report Consultant April 8, 2025
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Second Amendment to compensate the consultant for delivering the environmental document and associated tasks.
In summary, the Second Amendment to Contract 13110-2022 (Attachment #1) is requested for $23,400 to cover the amended Scope of Work which required additional resources for the preparation of the Final EIR and response to public comments; Mitigation, Monitoring, and Reporting Plan; Findings of Fact documents; additional project management time; as well as additional services in the amount of $11,600, consistent with Contract Section 3(c), to address any further issues that may arise during the preparation of the environmental impact report and public comment or public hearings.
Due to the consultant’s extensive work on this project to date, staff is of the opinion that ESA is uniquely qualified to complete the work commenced. To date, staff has been satisfied with ESA’s services and deliverables for the Conejo Summit Focused EIR. Staff is recommending that City Council approve the Second Amendment to Contract No. 13110-2022 with ESA in the amount of $35,000, increasing the total not-to-exceed amount from $140,000 to $175,000.
The applicant is to augment the deposit fee they have paid, including a supplemental 20 percent overhead fee of $7,000 for City staff oversight, so the City will fully recover its costs from the applicant’s deposit.
Additionally, Contract No. 13110-2022 is nearing its expiration date. In an abundance of caution, staff is recommending that City Council also extend the contract for an additional 12 months from June 30, 2025, to June 30, 2026, in order to finalize the CEQA process for the Conejo Summit Project.
Contract No. 13110-2022 was originally approved on September 13, 2022. The Levine Act, as amended by Senate Bill 1439, became effective as of January 1, 2023. Contract No. 13110-2022 as originally approved did not include a “Levine Act Compliance” section. This amendment adds the “Levine Act Compliance” language as new Section 31.
LEVINE ACT (California Government Code § 84308):
This item is subject to the Levine Act. City Councilmembers who have received a campaign contribution of more than $500 (aggregated) within the preceding 12 months from a party or their agent/representative, or a financially-interested participant involved in this proceeding may do either of the following: (1) disclose the contribution on the record and recuse themselves from this proceeding; or if applicable (2) return the portion of the contribution that exceeds $500 within 30 days from the time the official knew or should have known about the contribution, and participate in the proceeding.
Conejo Summit Project Environmental Impact Report Consultant April 8, 2025
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All parties and their agents/representatives must disclose on the record of this proceeding any aggregated contribution of more than $500 made to any Councilmember within the preceding 12 months. Councilmembers are prohibited from accepting, soliciting, or directing a campaign contribution of more than $500 (aggregated) from a party, their agent/representative, or a financially-interested participant during a proceeding and for 12 months following the date a final decision is made. In addition, a party, their agent/representative, or a financially- interested participant is prohibited from contributing more than $500 (aggregated) to a Councilmember during a proceeding and for 12 months following the date a final decision is made.
COUNCIL GOAL COMPLIANCE:
Meets the following City Council goals:
C. Operate City government in a fiscally and managerially responsible and prudent manner to ensure that the City of Thousand Oaks remains one of California's most desirable places to live, work, visit, recreate, and raise a family.
F. Provide and enhance essential infrastructure to ensure that the goals and policies of the Thousand Oaks General Plan are carried out and the City retains its role and reputation as a leader in protecting the environment and preserving limited natural resources.
I. Maintain a strong local employment base geared toward retaining high quality businesses; Sustain a healthy business community; and, Diversify the local economy, with a specific emphasis on small businesses and high technology/biomedical jobs.
PREPARED BY: Scott Kolwitz, Sr. Planner
Attachment:
Attachment #1 – Second Amendment to Contract No. 13110-2022 cdd:410-30\SJK\H:\COMMON\Administration & Special Projects\Contracts-POs-Task Orders\ESA-Shapell-Conejo Summit EIR 2022-70771